Thousands of people line up Saturday to enter a hurricane shelter at Germain Arena in Estero, Florida. The line is more than a mile long. Residents throughout Florida are seeking last minute shelter in advance of Hurricane Irma.

Hundreds of family members checked into the emergency shelter Friday morning at Oak Hammock Middle School in Fort Myers a few days ahead of Hurricane Irma. After seeing the storm shift west, many of the families search for safety.
Andrea Melendez/news-press.com

Amy Oshier shares a report from a RaceTrac gas station located at Colonial and Winkler Blvd in Fort Myers where she reports there is gas available at every pump as of 1:30 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 7, 2017.
Amy Oshier/Naples Daily News

Customers were informed the truck they were waiting for was not coming with water after some had waited more than two hours in line at the Publix on Six Mile and Colonia Blvd. in Fort Myers.
Andrea Melendez/news-press.com

The scene at Lowe's Home Improvement store in Naples on Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2017 in advance of category 5 storm Hurricane Irma. This was the last of the plywood at the store until a new shipment arrives.

Hurricane Irma, upgraded to a powerful Category 4 storm, barrels towards the Caribbean and the southern United States with residents in its path preparing for the worst. Video provided by Reuters
Newslook

Irma is bringing heavy squalls with embedded tornadoes across south Florida as it moves west/northwest at 7 mph.

According to the National Hurricane Center's 8 p.m. update, the storm's maximum sustained winds dropped a bit to 120 mph with higher gusts making Irma's current strength a Category 3 storm.

However, Irma is forecast to restrengthen once it moves away from Cuba. The National Hurricane Center advisory said Irma is expected to remain a powerful hurricane as it approaches Florida. Irma is about 110 miles southeast of Key West.

A northwest motion is expected to begin later today with a turn toward the north-northwest on Sunday. On the forecast track, the core of Irma is expected to reach the Florida Keys Sunday morning. The hurricane is expected to move along or near the southwest coast of Florida on Sunday afternoon.

Hurricane-force winds extend outward up to 70 miles from the center and tropical-storm-force winds extend outward up to 195 miles. Marathon International Airport recently reported a sustained wind of 48 mph and a gust to 67 mph.